The World Health Organization (WHO) today called on people around the world to renew their commitment to working together and supporting science as a twin force for better health, building on the World Health Day 2026 theme: “Together for Health. Standing with Science.” The campaign commemorates the establishment of WHO on April 7, 1948, and the launch of a year-long public health campaign.
Human health has changed significantly over the past century, primarily due to scientific advances and international cooperation. Global maternal mortality rates have fallen by more than 40% since 2000, and deaths among children under five have fallen by more than 50%. Advances in technology, scientific knowledge and skills, and collaboration between different disciplines, sectors, and countries have turned once-life-threatening health challenges, such as increased blood pressure, cancer diagnosis, and HIV infection, into manageable health problems that continue to extend and improve lifespans around the world.
However, threats to health continue to increase due to climate impacts, environmental degradation, geopolitical tensions, and demographic changes. These challenges include persistent diseases, strained health systems, and emerging diseases with the potential for epidemics and pandemics. Around the world, thousands of scientists are working with organizations like WHO to accelerate research and development of the policies, tools and innovations needed to protect communities today and protect the health of future generations.
Science is one of humanity’s most powerful tools for protecting and improving health. Thanks to the power of science, people in every country today live longer, healthier lives on average than their ancestors. Vaccines, penicillin, germ theory, MRI machines, and mapping the human genome are just a few of the scientific achievements that have saved lives and transformed the health of billions of people. ”
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization
The science behind health progress
Scientific innovations are most powerful when they are widely adopted and used. All successes in improving human health reflect the collaboration and cooperation of scientific institutions, policy makers, health professionals, and the general public. for example:
- Before the advent of modern anesthesia, surgery was unimaginably painful. Now, thanks to safer medicines, affordable technology, and trained professionals, life-saving surgeries can be performed while patients are comfortably asleep. Scientific advances have democratized these advances and made safe surgical treatments available around the world, including in many communities with limited resources.
- Over the past 50 years, global immunization efforts have saved more than 154 million children from infectious diseases. Vaccines have contributed to a 40% reduction in infant mortality, and one vaccine alone, the measles vaccine, has saved more than 90 million children. and
- Advances in early screening technology are transforming health outcomes. From electronic blood pressure monitors to mammography to screen for breast cancer, these tools are helping save millions of lives.
For 78 years, WHO convenes the world’s leading scientific institutions and has been at the forefront of global health and scientific transformation. for example:
- During the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak in 2003, WHO coordinated a global network of laboratories sharing real-time data. This collaboration enabled the rapid identification of the virus that causes SARS within two weeks and established a global model for outbreak detection and response that continues today.
- In 2009, WHO developed an alcohol-based hand sanitizer and promoted its global adoption in health care settings. This innovation, along with associated infection prevention strategies, will help protect millions of patients and healthcare workers around the world from infection and complications, including during the COVID-19 pandemic. and
- WHO continually identifies emerging challenges to human health and brings together leading scientists and policymakers to develop norms and standards that protect communities. For example, the WHO’s global air quality guidelines define the air quality levels needed to protect health from risks such as respiratory infections, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and lung cancer. WHO drinking water standards ensure that the water that comes out of your tap is safe and helps prevent diarrheal diseases, including deadly diseases such as cholera.
Stand with science for a healthier future
In line with the theme of World Health Day 2026, WHO and France’s G7 Presidency will host the One Health Summit in Lyon, France from April 5 to 7, bringing together heads of state, scientists and community leaders to strengthen coordinated action.
From 7 to 9 April, WHO will host the Global Forum of Collaborating Center Networks, which will bring together representatives from more than 800 academic and research institutions from more than 80 countries. These centers support WHO’s research, technical assistance and capacity-building activities around the world.
“Science transforms uncertainty into understanding and illuminates the path to protecting and healing our communities,” said WHO Chief Scientist Dr. Sylvie Briand. “Without clear, rigorous scientific research, we risk being guided by biases and misconceptions, and all too often, treatments that are ineffective or even harmful. Today, we must unite with science to ensure that our collaboration is sustained, supported, and strengthened for better health for generations to come.”
WHO emphasizes that science must continue to guide health decision-making at all levels. WHO and its partners generate and translate evidence across a wide range of health priorities, from infectious diseases and chronic diseases to mental health, nutrition and environmental risks, to help countries deliver effective and equitable care.
Achievements in global health show that when countries come together, backed by science, we can not only respond to crises more effectively but also build stronger and more equitable health systems for the future. WHO calls on governments, institutions and individuals to continue supporting and collaborating with science to ensure that evidence-based approaches guide health policy and everyday decision-making.
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